Hoe.



F A. BE AGH. HOE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 3, 1908.

.906Q093. Patented De.8,1908.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR BY fit TTORNEY' THE mamas PETERS L0,, wAsHlNcrON,11C.

FRED A. BEACH, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

HOE

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 8, 1908.

Application filed August 3, 1908. Serial No. $46,505.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED A. BEACH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Hoes; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to figures of reference marked thereon, whichform a part of this specification.

My improved invention relates to a hoe, and is designed to provide a hoethat is easy to manipulate, since its entrance into the ground isfacilitated by reason of its formation, but it causes just as muchground to be displaced when it is drawn forward transversely of theprongs, so that a great deal of work is accomplished at each stroke, butas hereinbefore said the entrance and withdrawal of the hoe into andfrom the soil is comparatively easy when compared with the forcing of anordinary flat scraper hoe into the ground. This desired result isbrought about by the disposition of prongs, combined with their shape,and also on account of the disposition of the points of the prongs, dueto the different lengths of the prongs.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in whichFigure 1 is a perspective view of my improved hoe, and Fig. 2 is asection across the prongs looking upward.

I rovide the hoe with any usual form of han le 10 which provides for themanual manipulation of the tool, this handle having on one end a sleeve11 which has attached thereto a shank 12 which is preferably curved andextends downwardly, ending up in a flat late 13 which forms the bodyportion of the oe. The flat plate 13 is formed into end rongs 14, whichend prongs have the flat aces 15 as shown in Fi 2, and the beveledsurfaces 16. These en prongs are rounded off as at 17 and form pointsrounded on all sides except on the face 15. If desired, I may add acentral prong 18 which has the flat surface 19, shown in Fig. 2, and thebeveled surfaces 20, being provided with a rounded end 21 similar to therounded ends 17 of the end prongs 14. These points 17 and 21 penetratethe ground easily, and when the tool is used by a gardener very littlepressure is needed to force the hoe well down into the ground whennecessary, which labor is very slight when compared with the forcenecessary to send an ordinary scraper hoe ifnto the ground any distancebelow the surace.

The central prong is made shorter than the end prongs because it needsless force to thrust the two prongs into the ground for their greaterdistance, but the central prong penetrates the ground far enough tocause a co-acting function so that all three prongs will move a quantityof soil when the handle of the hoe is pulled, which soil is equal toabout what would be moved by an ordinary flat scraper hoe. The prongsare strengthened by reason of the beveled faces 16 and 20 of the prongsforming beveled or pointed portions on the back of these prongs, but itwill be noted that the faces of the prongs are flat so that the surfacesbearing on the soil, when the hoe is pulled, are substantially in lineand simultaneously move the soil and thus carry it forward in the sameway as an ordinary hoe would do.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is A hoe comprising abody portion formed of a flat plate of metal having prongs on its ends,these prongs having beveled backs and points on their ends, and acentral prong shorter than the end prongs and extending substantiallyparallel with them, the central prong having a beveled back and apointed end, the faces of the prongs being fiat and substantially inline so as to co-act to move soil when the flat faces are manipulatedthrough the ground.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing, I have hereunto set my handthis 13th day of July 1908.

. FRED A. BEAQH. Witnesses:

WM. H. OAMFIELD, E. A. PELL.

